Return to Hogwarts
by xxXSarah-Elizabeth-CullenXxx
Summary: 18 years after the defeat of Lord Voldemort Harry Potter is returning to Hogwarts as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Follow him as he teaches the new generation of witches and wizards to defend themselves against evil, catches cheaters, gives house points and detentions. AU
1. Chapter 1

It was late in the evening when an owl came with a letter from the Headmistress of Hogwarts requesting meeting with him as quickly as possible. He didn't hesitate as he rose from his arm chair and walked to the desk. After scribbling his reply that she was always welcome to visit him at any time he attached it to the out stretched leg of the owl. He watched the large bird disappear into the evening sky before settling back down in his chair. He had a pretty vague idea of what the Headmistress wished to discuss with him as they had had this discussion many times before. As he opened the book he had been reading he couldn't help but wonder if he should take her up on her request this time. The children were no longer small and his oldest would be attending school in the fall as well. He ran his hand through his messy hair and stared off into the distance. As he put the book back down so as to head into the kitchen to make some tea the little house elf came in with a tray.

"I thought Master might be needing some tea so I brought some." The little elf croaked in his old voice.

"Yes thank you, I was just about to make some." The wizard replied with a kind smile. He studied the elf who had served his so well these past years. While he was getting on in age he refused to retire, he had thought to bring on another elf to help but had yet to ask if the old elf would take offense. Perhaps now would not be the right time. "Perhaps you could bring another cup? I am expecting the headmistress soon."

"Yes of course Master." The old elf made to leave the room back for the kitchen before he paused and looked up at his master. "Is she coming to ask you to take the job?"

The man studied the elf for a moment before replying "Yes she is. What do you think about that?"

"I would never presume to tell Master what he should do, but I think Master is a great wizard and with the little masters and little mistress growing up Master could teach so much." He croaked before he backed out of the room with a bow.

Returning to his chair sipping at his tea he thought of what the elf had said. He did have a lot to teach, it was a subject he had loved his entire wizarding life. He was lost in his thought for a only a moment when the door opened again and through it stepped the Headmistress of Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

"Professor how kind of you to drop by." He said as he stood from the chair yet again to greet her.

"Mr. Potter let us not beat around the bush, you know why I have come and if you turn me down yet again I shall be in very deep trouble of finding a suitable professor." Minerva McGonagall had never been a woman for small talk; she was exactly as Harry remembered her, tall, intimidating and straight to the point. "I understand that you have reservations but as I have said in the past they are silly and not at all important. I…"

"I will accept the post." He cut her off. Better to tell her now rather than listen to her speech.

She looked at him in shock. She opened her mouth as if to say something but closed it against as she thought better of it. She reached inside her robes pocket and handed him a letter. "This contains all the information you need for the coming semester including you class schedule. I shall see you September 1st Professor." With a small snug smile she then exited the room with robes flowing behind her.

It was now official Harry Potter was a Hogwarts teacher, and not just any teacher but the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. With start of term beginning in just a few short months Harry crossed the room to his desk and opened the letter. Better begin working on it now rather than procrastinate like he had when we was in school. As he looked over the information he noticed that there wasn't a guideline for what material he was to teach which year. This made him smile as he knew that McGonagall had probably left it out on purpose trusting him to make a course outline according to what he believed to be most important and appropriate for each year. As he settled into his desk chair to begin writing lesson plans he thought back to all of the professors he had had during his years at the school. He hoped to make a more stable learning environment for his future students. With this in mind he prepared himself for his return to Hogwarts.


	2. Chapter 2

It was early in the morning when Harry awoke. He gave a very large sigh as he swung himself out of bed. Ginny gave a slight stir but continued to sleep. He half expected himself to be awake before Kreacher however as he stepped out of his bedroom there the little elf was waiting.

"Master is up early this morning" He croaked, it wasn't a question just a simple statement.

Harry nodded as he made is way down the stairs and in to the kitchen. He sat himself down as Kreacher brought him a cup of tea. He didn't feel the need to rush this morning as it was the last morning he would be waking up in his own home for quite some time. He and Ginny had decided it would be best for him to remain at Hogwarts and he had to admit he agreed. It would be time consuming to commute and it would be easier for him to be available for help and tutoring.

Harry had had himself and James packed for a few days now, he knew his son well and if they had tried to wait until this morning they would have missed the train. Ginny would be up shortly and following her would be Albus, then Lily would pop up a few minutes later. James of course would be the last one out of bed.

Harry sat there thinking about the upcoming term and it wasn't until he heard the chair next to him move that he snapped out of his thoughts. He looked to his left and was stunned by the sight of a dressed James sitting beside him.

"Good morning son," He greeted "it seems kind of early to see you."

James responded with his signature eye roll and simply stated "Today is September 1st" He then helped himself to the pork sausages that Kreacher has set out for them.

"Are you excited to be starting school then?" Harry inquired casually, he had learned not to show too much interest in what James liked or else James would think it was lame and move on.

He was pleasantly surprised however when James looked over at him with a beaming smile and was nodding vigorously. "I get to use magic Dad! Who wouldn't be excited to use magic!"

Harry barely managed to hide his laugh as an image of Dudley popped in to his head. "I am glad you are so excited. You will have to work very hard at it but I hope you will find magic to be as wonderful as I do."

Suddenly James looked very concerned. He bit his lip and looked like he was going to ask a question but hesitated. Harry left it alone for a few minutes when James finally blurted it out "Please don't give me homework on our first day!"

Harry couldn't help but chuckle at this "I will not give you homework on your first day of lessons." He had almost forgotten that his son would be his student for the entire duration of his school career. It made Harry slightly nervous but he knew if he could teach Ron back in the DA he could certainly teach his own son who was not nearly as hot headed as Ron.

Harry continued to answer some of James's questions about the castle when Ginny came shuffling down the stairs. She had never been a morning person but Harry never failed to think she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She smiled and kissed his cheek as she walked past to sit on the other side of the table.

"Are you ready for school James dear?" She yawned out and she added sugar to the tea that Kreacher placed in front of her.

James nodded and repeated the information that Harry had shared so far. "Dad even promised no homework for our first lesson!" He beamed with pride as if he had won a major battle on behalf of all the first years. Harry didn't have the heart to tell him that the lesson plan hadn't called for any homework. Ginny obviously knew this but just gave a smile and told him how nice of a father he had not to give homework.

The rest of the morning went smoothly Albus and Lily had gotten up without trouble and had eaten breakfast. There had been no fighting and very few tears, mostly from Lily, as they left for Kings Cross Station. It had been a very difficult time finding parking and getting all of their things together. As they made their way to the platform Harry couldn't help but think of his first time here and how he would have never found it if it hadn't been for Molly Weasley.

As he led his family toward the platform her couldn't help but notice a mop of red hair that stuck up above the crowd. As they drew closer they saw that it was none other than Ron Weasley.

"Hello Ron!" Harry greeted cheerfully with a quick embrace. "What on earth are you doing here, Rose isn't old enough yet to attend school." Rose Ron's eldest was Albus's age and wouldn't be old enough to attend until next year.

"I know! Hermione just wanted to be here to wish James off to school and to see you off as well." He leaned in close and whispered "I think she's a little miffed they never asked her to teach, even though she loves her job at the Ministry."

Harry simply nodded and laughed as they continued their way to the entrance. Ron decided to go first to show the kids just how to do it. James followed and Harry came behind him. Ginny followed with Lily in her arms and Albus at her side.

Hermione was waiting for them on the platform. The years had done nothing to change her, she was still just a bushy haired as she had been when they met for the first time. She smiled at them as they drew near and waved with her free hand. Rose was standing next to her looking around in awe, Hugo was resting on her hip waving at his Aunt Ginny as she came up to them.

"Hello family! About time you got here! They have already started letting student board the train." Hermione truly hadn't changed much since school. Always the perfectionist.

"Nice to see you too Hermione, kids say hello to your Aunt" Harry instructed but his children were focused on other things. James was looking around to see if he could see any familiar faces, mostly his cousin Teddy Lupin. Albus was chatting with Rose about how this year was going to be so long and Lily was laughing at her Uncle Ron who was making silly faces at his wife when her back was turned.

Harry was standing their observing his family when he felt a tug on his jacket. He looked down to see James looking up at him. "Dad why are people staring at you?" Harry looked around to find that, indeed, people were staring, the children not as much as their parents or some of the older students.

He ran his hand through his hair and straightened his glasses as he responded "Well son you'll find out in school but I suppose it is safe for me to give you the heads up. You Aunt Hermione, Uncle Ron, and I were involved in the last wizarding war." He watched as a look of shock crossed his sons face. Harry and Ginny had agreed that the children didn't need to know about Harry's life until they were old enough for school.

Before James could ask anymore question Harry distracted him by informing him to get on the train and that they had a sorting ceremony to get to. This distraction worked well as James suddenly could talk of nothing else besides Gryffindor.

They loaded his things on the train and kissed Ginny and the rest of the family goodbye as they entered the train. Harry waved goodbye to his son and made his way to the front of the train to sit with any other professors that would be traveling to school while James headed to the back to join the other first years.

Harry found a quiet compartment and took as seat. He nestled himself by the window and pulled out his book. He knew it wouldn't be long before news of his presence on the train would reach students ears and he wanted to enjoy his quiet while he could.

It didn't take long before he felt eyes staring at him through the carriage door. He look up to see a group of third years pressing themselves up against the glass. He lowered his glasses and waved them in.

"Spying is considered rude." He chastised them before smiling "I assume you all know my name so may I inquire after yours?"

The little third years blushed but one brave young Ravenclaw stepped forward in to the compartment and stuck out his hand. "Jackson Brown sir." The boy seemed to falter in his bravery for just a moment after Harry looked at his hand.

Harry smiled at Jackson and shook his hand "Hello Mr. Brown, I am Professor Potter."

One of the girls let out a squeak and Harry directed his attention to her. She look familiar but he couldn't put his finger on it. "Hello back there. Did you have something you'd like to say?" he smiled kindly at her.

She stepped forward and looked down at her feet and whispered something so softly he couldn't make it out.

"I'm sorry miss I didn't quite catch that." He said kindly.

"Thank you." She said a little louder this time, he looked at her with a small smile waiting for her to say something else. "My name is Tanvi Patil." And with that Harry knew why she looked familiar she looked just like Padma Patil. "I wouldn't be here without you."

"Nice to meet you Tanvi, I'm surprised your mother didn't write me and tell me you were in school." Harry smiled, it had been years since he had heard from either of the Patil twins but still surely they would have told him he'd be teaching their child.

"She talks about you from time to time. When her and Papa get really quiet at night I can hear him telling her 'don't worry Harry won.'" She immediately stopped and started blushing as if she had shared too much, which to be honest she had. Harry was feeling a little warm around the collar but he was not yet their teacher and this was his friend's child.

"Do not worry Tanvi this will remain between us. I'm glad your mother is doing well and I look forward to seeing you in class." He smiled at her. He was introduced to the few remaining students before ushering them back to their own carriages.

He knew they were not the only group that would find him in his little hidden corner and he was right. There were several more groups, a few Hufflepuff, a host of Gryffindor, even a few Slytherin came by.

The most interesting group had been the Slytherin students to be sure. He didn't know what to make of them coming by, he knew he couldn't hate them as they were not their parents or their grandparents. He met Marcus Flint's daughter, Mackenzie, Zabini's son, William, even Pansy Parkinson had twins, Isabella and Phillip. They had introduced themselves and said how they were looking forward to lessons this term. He had felt very uncomfortable until Isabella stayed behind for a moment and told him that her mother wakes up sometimes with nightmares and whispers "He lost, he's gone" until she calms down. Hearing this made him feel much better about the year.

If was just a little while later that he had changed in to is robes and was preparing to exit the train. As he stepped off the train he was greeted by a giant man and his booming voice. "'Arry! Good ter see ya! I hear you are joinin the teachers! Couldn't believe it meself when Minerva told me!"

"Hello to you too Hagrid! Yes, I am on staff this year! I am looking forward to it, I'll see you at the feast!" Harry shouted back as he made his way to the carriages pulled by threstles. He knew that there would be more time for catching up after the feast, perhaps he would have tea with Hagrid tomorrow.

He was lost in thought until he saw the castle rising up in front of him and he felt like he was home. He just hoped that James would feel the same way as he had when he first saw the castle from the lake.


End file.
